Chapter Summaries

As the elders of the Twelve Great Gods debated how to find the missing new Witch King, they resolved to go to Witch King Village despite the ancestral decree. A powerful figure then appeared above Houtu Village, but he declared that he was not the new Witch King and that the new Witch King had not yet been born.

• Ji Qing and Ruo Hong questioned why the new Witch King had not appeared after the prolonged Prayer Ritual, and Jianji agreed that something might have gone wrong in Witch King Village.
• Jianji explained the Witch King's earlier arrangements, and the elders decided to go to Witch King Village even though entering Witch God Ridge without a Witch King Order was forbidden.
• Jianji proposed sending Ziming a message first, and the elders from the villages agreed to accompany him.
• A chilling aura swept over Houtu Village, silenced the elders' soul-beast mounts, and cleared the storm clouds from Million Meng Mountain.
• A towering Wu God arrived amid green seal-script and was mistaken for the new Witch King, but he stopped the elders from kneeling and said the new Witch King had not yet been born.

Xiao Hua revealed himself to the Witch Elders, exposed Devil Race infiltrators, and explained that the new Witch King had been born beyond Million Meng Mountain. He returned lost divine abilities to the Witch Elders and left them to restore soul cultivation and prepare for the Witch King's arrival.

• Xiao Hua revealed his identity to Jian Ji and Zhe Min, then told the Witch Elders that Witch King Shi's arrangements were in effect.
• Xiao Hua killed more than twenty Devil Race infiltrators disguised as Witch Elders, and Jian Ji ordered an investigation of their villages.
• Xiao Hua told the Witch Elders that the new Witch King had been born on Yilin Continent, beyond Million Meng Mountain, and that he could not guide them because he would soon ascend.
• Xiao Hua gave the Witch Elders lost divine abilities entrusted to him by the Twelve Great Gods, and Jian Ji concluded that they were meant to restore soul cultivation and welcome the new Witch King.

Xiao Hua revealed to the Witch Elders that the Witch Kings had been suppressed and that Zi Ming remained trapped until Witch King Ming returned. After learning that soul cultivators had no known path to ascension, Xiao Hua and Wu Daoist agreed that Wu Daoist could become the Witch Father, and Xiao Hua told Jian Ji about him.

• Jian Ji and Xiao Hua prayed to Great God Houtu, and news that Witch King Ming had entered reincarnation brought the Witch Elders hope as life force spread through the shrine.
• Xiao Hua showed the Witch Elders the Witch King's human-faced, dragon-tailed form and explained that the Witch Kings and Zi Ming were trapped in a suppressed space.
• Xiao Hua recounted the Witch King's long suppression and the reason Witch King Ming had to be born on Yilin Continent, leaving the Witch Elders remorseful over their past treatment of the Witch King.
• Xiao Hua urged the Witch Elders to prepare for Witch King Ming's return and govern their villages well, then learned from Jian Ji that Million Meng Mountain had no records of soul cultivators ascending.
• Xiao Hua and Wu Daoist discussed possible reasons soul cultivators could not ascend and agreed that Wu Daoist would prepare to become the Witch Father if needed.
• Xiao Hua told Jian Ji that Witch King Shi had mistaken him for the new Witch King and that Wu Daoist, a powerful shaman, had come with him to Million Meng Mountain before leaving to seek the origin of the Twelve Great Gods.

Xiao Hua introduced Wu Daoist to the Million Meng Mountain Witch Elders as a possible Witch Father for their next Witch King, while Wu Daoist refused the role and agreed to help Xiao Hua break the immortal formation. The chapter left Jian Ji with the repaired Tongming Mirror after Wu Daoist reminded Xiao Hua to fulfill his promise to Ziming.

• Xiao Hua led Jian Ji and the Witch Elders outside the Bone Hall to welcome Wu Daoist, whom they hailed as the Witch Emperor.
• Wu Daoist explained that Million Meng Mountain and the Wumeng Mountain Range shared an origin, and said the old Witch King had returned to Great God Houtu's embrace.
• Xiao Hua tried to persuade Wu Daoist to become the Witch Father of Million Meng Mountain, but Wu Daoist refused and said he would first help break the immortal formation.
• Xiao Hua told the Witch Elders about the immortal formation, and Ji Qing promised to search Rushou Village's records for clues.
• Wu Daoist asked about Midnight and reminded Xiao Hua of his promise to Ziming, so Xiao Hua gave Jian Ji the repaired Tongming Mirror.

Xiao Hua examined Ziye and confirmed that he could return Ziye’s soul from the Soul Falling Lamp, though awakening him would require life power. He began forcing the lamp’s three-headed black dog to release its souls, leaving the resurrection attempt underway.

• Wu Daoist told the Witch Elders that Xiao Hua planned to help Ziming resurrect Ziye, and Xiao Hua clarified that he needed to examine Ziye before confirming the chance of success.
• Jian Ji brought Ziye’s preserved body from the Bone Hall and explained Ziming and Ziye’s history to the gathered Witch Elders.
• Xiao Hua used the Soul Bridge to inspect Ziye and determined that he could restore Ziye’s soul if it was inside the Soul Falling Lamp.
• Wu Daoist agreed to use the Finishing Touch to provide the life power needed to awaken Ziye, and Jian Ji handed Xiao Hua the Soul Falling Lamp.
• Xiao Hua summoned the lamp’s three-headed black dog and used soul-thread tentacles to make it open its mouths and release their contents.

Xiao Hua retrieved Ziye's soul from the Soul Falling Lamp and, with Wu Daoist's help and his own life Qi, revived him. As Ziye fell asleep recovering, Sui Hong arrived and begged Xiao Hua to save Zi Yan.

• Xiao Hua found that his soul techniques could not extract Ziye from the Soul Falling Lamp, but he assured Jianji that Ziye could still be saved.
• Xiao Hua used the Other Shore willow branch to draw Ziye's soul across a rainbow bridge and return it to his body, damaging the Soul Falling Lamp in the process.
• Xiao Hua gave Jianji the damaged Soul Falling Lamp to refine, while Wu Daoist used the Ya Brush to restore life force to Ziye's body.
• Xiao Hua added his refined primordial Qi to Ziye's soul, and Ziye awakened briefly before falling asleep from exhaustion.
• Sui Hong arrived and begged Xiao Hua to save Zi Yan, apologizing for her past offense against him.

Xiao Hua faced Zhang Jie, who had become tainted by the Blood Waves of the Bitter Sea and sought the Other Shore. After their clash, Zhang Jie revealed that Sacred Ointment Oil could cleanse her sin, and Xiao Hua recognized the substance and gave it to her.

• Sui Hong begged Xiao Hua to revive Zi Yan, but Zhang Jie arrived before he could explain and demanded the Other Shore from Wu Daoist.
• Wu Daoist claimed Xiao Hua was a Daoist cultivator of the Lost Land, and Zhang Jie accused Xiao Hua of deceiving her before pursuing him and Wu Daoist.
• Zhang Jie attacked with a cross-shaped sword of light, but Xiao Hua and Zhang Jie both suffered the force of their clash.
• Zhang Jie explained that the Blood Waves of the Bitter Sea had tainted her and that she feared becoming a Sin Angel without Sacred Ointment Oil.
• Xiao Hua produced a sacred vessel he had found beneath a Devil Venerable's corpse, recognized its contents as Sacred Ointment Oil, and handed it to Zhang Jie.

Zhang Jie used Sacred Ointment Oil and Sacred Blood to cleanse the sins in her human body and began advancing, but she still insisted on taking Other Shore from Xiao Hua. Xiao Hua and Wu Daoist resisted her, and Buddhist light clashed with her Sacred Light as the chapter ended with Xiao Hua’s Buddha statue golden body emerging.

• Zhang Jie explained that human flesh was a dwelling place for sin, then used prayers and Sacred Ointment Oil to summon blood-stained crosses and holy lambs.
• Sacred Blood poured over Zhang Jie, erased the remaining black threads of sin, and restored her vitality as a new radiant feather began to form.
• Zhang Jie revealed that the vessel had contained Sacred Blood and said she would not abandon Other Shore, then reached across a thousand li to seize Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua broke Zhang Jie's spatial seal with lightning and blocked her hand with Buddhist light and a Buddha palm.
• Wu Daoist unleashed Three Corpse Yin Thunder and his supreme witch body to help resist Zhang Jie’s Sacred Light.
• Xiao Hua summoned the Buddha statue golden body of Namo Great Compassionate Guanyin, filling the area with Buddhist light and compassion.

Xiao Hua manifested the Namo Great Compassionate Guanyin Buddha Fruit, drawing a vast flow of faith that fed his growing crystalline godhead while Wu Daoist protected Zhang Jie. After the spectacle ended, Xiao Hua and Zhang Jie discussed her return to the Sacred Light Realm and the meaning of all paths being law.

• Xiao Hua revealed his Guanyin Buddha image, and a river of faith surged toward him as Zhang Jie feared it would destroy her spirit body.
• Xiao Hua absorbed the faith into a vortex behind his head, while Wu Daoist used Three Corpse Yin Thunder to separate Zhang Jie from the Buddhist light and protect her.
• Zhang Jie explained that angels accepted destruction as a step toward rebirth, and she realized Xiao Hua's Buddha Fruit would not guide him to the Buddhist Land.
• After ten days, Xiao Hua withdrew his Buddha image and apologized to Zhang Jie for washing away her passage to the Sacred Light Realm.
• Zhang Jie said she could summon the guiding light again after recovering, then praised Xiao Hua's compassionate nature.
• Xiao Hua told Zhang Jie that all paths were law and explained that he meant laws and origins, not techniques or divine abilities.

Xiao Hua and Zhang Jie reconciled over the Other Shore, with Zhang Jie explaining why she trusted him to keep it and recounting how she encountered Bai Fei and Du Peng. The chapter ended with Zhang Jie revealing that she had entered Yilin Continent through a spatial rift while looking for a place to rest.

• Xiao Hua asked Zhang Jie for the Other Shore, but she willingly let him keep it because he was trusted by both the Sacred Light Realm and Buddhist Kingdom, and she could not take it from him.
• Zhang Jie explained that the Other Shore could help retrieve souls but could not restore life without the Holy Spirit's life-giving breath.
• Zhang Jie told Xiao Hua that she had rescued Bai Fei from soul beasts and given him light feathers, then later cooperated with Du Peng to cross the Wumeng Mountain Range.
• Zhang Jie said she had rescued Du Peng and Bai Fei from the Buddhist formation separately, then left them near the Wumeng Mountain Range's edge.
• Zhang Jie told Wu Daoist that she had entered Yilin Continent through a spatial rift because its laws were weaker and she needed a place to rest.

Xiao Hua invited Zhang Jie to help save the Three Great Continents, and she agreed to join once her injuries healed, though her loyalty to the Holy Lord remained firm. After Zhang Jie departed, Xiao Hua and Wu Daoist left Million Meng Mountain, choosing not to return to Houtu Village or rush to the Taiqing Sect’s Heaven, Earth, and Human Peaks without evidence.

• Xiao Hua explained the crisis facing the Three Great Continents and asked Zhang Jie what she cultivated for.
• Zhang Jie said angels served the Holy Lord and would save lives if commanded, but agreed that doing good was worthwhile and offered to help oppose the Buddhist Kingdom’s formation once she recovered.
• Zhang Jie departed in her vessel, and Wu Daoist reminded Xiao Hua that he could summon her through the Other Shore.
• Xiao Hua and Wu Daoist decided not to return to Houtu Village because Zi Yan could not be revived and they did not want to deepen Ji Man’s grief.
• Xiao Hua rejected Wu Daoist’s suggestion to go straight to Heaven, Earth, and Human Peaks, saying they needed evidence before confronting the Taiqing Sect.

Xiao Hua returned to Xiaoyu Continent and found Li Zongbao and Gu Yu under attack by Ye Yu and Void Sky Sword Sect cultivators. Li Zongbao fought to stop them from taking Gu Yu, and the clash continued as Martial Uncle Qin and Sun Luo joined forces against his Immortal-Piercing Whip.

• Wu Daoist pointed out Liuyun Lake below, and Xiao Hua heard Li Zongbao's voice and rushed to him.
• Xiao Hua found Li Zongbao defending the injured Gu Yu against Ye Yu, Martial Uncle Qin, and Sun Luo.
• Gu Yu offered to return with Martial Uncle Qin to spare Li Zongbao, but Li Zongbao refused to let her go and challenged Ye Yu.
• Li Zongbao struck at Ye Yu with the Immortal-Piercing Whip, forcing him to defend with a flying sword and a dangerous soul artifact.
• Martial Uncle Qin and Sun Luo used Sword Transformation against the whip; Qin's transformed sword shattered, while Sun Luo's attack pressed Li Zongbao.

Sun Luo exposed Qin Nongxue’s plan to seize Li Zongbao’s spirit artifact and turned against Ye Yu, while Gu Yu and Li Zongbao fought to protect each other amid the shifting battle. As Sun Luo and Ye Yu clashed, Qin Nongxue launched a desperate attack on Li Zongbao, only for an unknown intervention to strike at him.

• Sun Luo warned Gu Yu that Chong Taixu had issued no Sword Master Token and that Qin Nongxue wanted the spirit artifact in Li Zongbao’s hand, then flew at Ye Yu.
• Gu Yu attacked Liu Su, transformed into a sword, and wounded him with her invisible golden-thread sword, but Liu Su trapped the sword and pressed his advantage.
• Qin Nongxue attacked Li Zongbao with freezing sword intent, and Li Zongbao countered with the Immortal-Piercing Whip, badly injuring Qin Nongxue’s left arm.
• Li Zongbao turned away from Qin Nongxue’s attack to block the tiny sword aimed at Gu Yu, while Qin Nongxue charged at his back.
• Ye Yu fought Sun Luo with ghostly sword intent and a soul-artifact bell; Sun Luo revealed a Bone Banner and unleashed its ghosts and devil qi.
• As Qin Nongxue tried to assassinate Li Zongbao, a large scripture-inscribed bone sphere emerged from devilish shadows and smashed toward him.

Qin Nongxue exposed and attacked Vice Sect Master Ye, who revealed himself as Ye Yin and confronted Ye Yu over their family’s bloody past. Ye Yin invoked a joint sword cultivator–Heavenly Demon Sect decree to protect Li Zongbao and summoned reinforcements, leaving Ye Yu surrounded and preparing to fight.

• Qin Nongxue shattered the bone sphere, discovered Ye Yin hidden in the void, and rescued Liu Su from Li Zongbao.
• Ye Yin accepted Sun Luo’s allegiance and revealed that he was the son of Ye Feng, whom Ye Yu had condemned and whose family had been destroyed.
• Ye Yin said he had spared Ye Yu for a century but was now acting on Zhang Qingxiao’s command to protect Li Zongbao.
• Ye Yin displayed the joint command banner, but Ye Yu refused to obey it, claiming allegiance to Fu Man of Million Mengshan Shebi Village.
• Ye Yin summoned two Sword Transformation first grade swordsmen and several Heavenly Demon Sect experts, surrounding Ye Yu and his companions.
• Ye Yu accused Ye Yin of using a forged order as an excuse for revenge and began threatening to fight back.

Ye Yu called on Lu Ruochang to fulfill her promise by capturing Li Zongbao, but Xiao Hua arrived and overwhelmed her with a lightning strike. Xiao Hua reunited with Li Zongbao, who told him that his Rejuvenation Pill had failed to work.

• Lu Ruochang appeared at Ye Yu's request, and Ye Yu asked her to capture Li Zongbao and hold him for three days.
• Lu Ruochang attacked Li Zongbao with a giant hand of sword light as Ye Yin and Li Zongbao tried to resist.
• Xiao Hua appeared and struck Lu Ruochang with a lightning fist, smashing her into a mountain.
• Ye Yin and Gu Yu recognized Xiao Hua, while Ye Yu reacted with alarm.
• Xiao Hua greeted Li Zongbao as his senior brother, and Li Zongbao told him that the Rejuvenation Pill was ineffective.

Xiao Hua returned and confronted Lu Ruochang, Ye Yu, and the others after they had threatened Li Zongbao. He spared Lu Ruochang and declined to judge old and private grudges, leaving Ye Yin to pursue Ye Yu as Qin Nongxue and Liu Su begged for mercy.

• Xiao Hua reassured Li Zongbao and praised Ye Yin for his conduct and his teachings from Zhang Qingxiao.
• Lu Ruochang emerged from the rocks and bowed to Xiao Hua, recognizing that his strength far surpassed hers.
• Xiao Hua questioned Lu Ruochang about whether she would have killed Li Zongbao, and she admitted that she would have followed through on her promise to Ye Yu.
• Xiao Hua spared Lu Ruochang and told Li Zongbao that the Sword Dao Battle’s past violence should be left behind.
• Xiao Hua declined to intervene in Ye Yu’s private feud with Ye Yin, so Ye Yu fled and Ye Yin ordered Heavenly Demon Sect disciples to pursue him.
• Qin Nongxue and Liu Su knelt before Lu Ruochang and pleaded for their lives.

Xiao Hua helped Li Zongbao kill Qin Nongxue and Liu Su, then learned how Zhang Qingxiao and the Heavenly Demon Sect had searched for him after his disappearance. He kept his return secret for now and gave Gu Yu a rare flying sword to refine as her natal weapon.

• Xiao Hua infused Li Zongbao with true essence, enabling him to kill Qin Nongxue and Liu Su with the Immortal-Piercing Whip.
• Xiao Hua rejected Ye Yu’s offer to trade Xiao Mao’s secret for his life, and Ye Yin sent Ye Yu’s Soul Nest and corpse back to Shebi Village.
• Xiao Hua dismissed Lu Ruochang and the other sword cultivators after asking them to keep his appearance confidential.
• Ye Yin explained that Zhang Qingxiao had searched for Xiao Hua and had threatened to fight the Joyful Sect if anyone harmed Li Zongbao.
• Xiao Hua told Ye Yin not to inform Zhang Qingxiao of his return because he intended to surprise him, then praised Gu Yu’s cultivation and gave her a rare flying sword.

Xiao Hua gave Gu Yu a powerful sword intent and took Li Zongbao aside to catch up. Their conversation ended with Li Zongbao admitting that he expected to die soon and had found no way to revive Zhuo Xia.

• Xiao Hua bestowed a crystalline sword intent on Gu Yu and told Ye Yin to protect her while he took Li Zongbao away.
• Xiao Hua told Li Zongbao that he had been pursued into an immortal array and reached another realm, while Li Zongbao described his cultivation and search for a way to revive Zhuo Xia.
• Xiao Hua asked whether Li Zongbao’s reluctance toward Gu Yu came from his limited lifespan, but Li Zongbao rejected the idea of pursuing a relationship with her.
• Li Zongbao explained that he had followed Xiao Hua’s jade slip into Million Meng Mountain and adopted an inheritance that cultivated the Golden Core rather than the Nascent Soul.
• Li Zongbao lamented that he had searched all of Million Meng Mountain without finding a way to revive Zhuo Xia, then admitted he did not expect to live much longer.

Xiao Hua gave Li Zongbao the complete Nine Revolutions Golden Core method and explained the dangers of fusing with a Golden Core, then helped him begin the process. The fusion reached its first major stage when a powerful phantom emerged from the Golden Core.

• Xiao Hua gave Li Zongbao the complete Nine Revolutions Golden Core cultivation method and learned that Li had obtained a different version.
• Xiao Hua explained the wider world beyond Xiaoyu Continent and encouraged Li to seek a way to revive Cai Zhuoxia.
• Xiao Hua gave Li a Five Revolutions Golden Core and warned him that fusing with it could expose him to demonic obstructions and a double invasion of heavenly demons.
• Li Zongbao quickly comprehended the fusion technique while Xiao Hua refined the Immortal-Piercing Whip.
• Li began the fusion, and Xiao Hua sealed off the surrounding area as a black vortex formed at Li's lower dantian.
• Xiao Hua tossed the Golden Core into the vortex's fluctuations, and a humanoid phantom with Origin Energy Eighth Rank aura emerged from it.

Xiao Hua helped Li Zongbao fuse an eighth-revolution golden core, and Li Zongbao overcame its inner demons by holding on to his longing for Cai Zhuoxia. After giving Li Zongbao the refined Immortal-Piercing Whip, Xiao Hua hinted that Cai Zhuoxia might repay him, leaving Li Zongbao startled and trying to understand what he meant.

• Xiao Hua waited as Li Zongbao slowly drew the golden core into his lower dantian, then guarded him as the fusion triggered powerful inner demons.
• Li Zongbao saw Cai Zhuoxia among the illusions, closed his eyes, and overcame the demonic tribulation without Xiao Hua intervening.
• Li Zongbao completed the fusion, and Xiao Hua gave him the refined Immortal-Piercing Whip.
• Xiao Hua urged Li Zongbao to find a companion, but Li Zongbao said there was nothing between him and Gu Yu and brought out Cai Zhuoxia's crystal coffin.
• Li Zongbao said his longing for Cai Zhuoxia fulfilled the rest of his life, and Xiao Hua suggested she should repay him; Li Zongbao suddenly realized Xiao Hua might mean something by it.